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Plus, stay tuned because later in the show I’ll tell you why Renault goes to Shanghai to learn China speed.
Welcome to EV News China — the podcast dedicated to the world’s largest electric vehicle market. Each day, I bring you the latest headlines, insights, and analysis from the heart of China’s booming EV industry — and decode how fast-moving developments in the east are shaping the global EV landscape.
GEELY BETS CHINA SCALE WILL BUY GLOBAL CLOUT
Geely Holding sold 4.12m vehicles in 2025, up 26% on the year. New energy vehicles did more than half the work: 2.29m units, up 58% year-on-year, pushed NEVs to 56% of total sales.
The group now wants to turn domestic scale into overseas power. By 2030 it targets 6.5m global sales, with about 75% NEVs. It expects international markets to supply more than one-third of that total and wants global revenue to top RMB 1trn (about $144bn). It also aims to rank among the world’s top five carmakers by volume.
The Geely Auto brand carried most of the load in 2025. It sold 3.02m units, beating its 3m target and growing 38.96% year-on-year. Exports, at 418,904 vehicles, rose only 3.59%, a sign of both opportunity and friction as Chinese firms push into markets that worry about overcapacity, subsidies and security.
For 2026 Geely Auto has set a sales target of 3.45m vehicles, including 2.22m NEVs. That assumes electrified models keep driving growth even as China’s EV market gets fiercer and price pressure bites.
If Geely reaches 6.5m global sales by 2030 with three-quarters NEVs, it will have turned a domestic tilt into a broader international footprint.
https://evne.ws/4sO3Z4i
LUXEED R7 CLAIMS WORLD’S SLICKEST SUV SHAPE
HIMA’s Luxeed R7 Pure Electric Ultra posts a drag coefficient of 0.217, certified by the China Automotive Engineering Research Institute (CAERI) as the lowest of any production SUV. In a market where Xiaomi’s YU7 comes in at 0.245, Tesla’s Model Y Juniper at 0.220 and Onvo’s L60 at 0.229, that gap matters.
Aerodynamics sit at the centre of China’s EV arms race. The R7’s coupe-like silhouette and fastback push it towards sedan territory, where the most efficient shapes usually sit. Yet the form is only part of the story. HIMA cites more than 20 drag-cutting features, from an Active Grille Shutter (AGS) that opens and closes with speed and cooling demand, to 3D curved front wheel wind deflectors and front bumper air curtains that clean up airflow around the nose.
Flush door handles, frameless exterior mirrors, low-drag wheels and a streamlined ducktail spoiler all aim at the same goal. Engineers also reworked the front lip and air curtain channels to cut turbulence. CAERI’s work did not stop at the wind tunnel. It also measured rolling resistance, folding in drivetrain and tyre losses to gauge real-world energy use.
On that broader measure the Luxeed R7’s energy consumption comes in 3.44% below the industry average. That promises gains not only in range but also in high-speed stability and NVH performance, all closely tied to aerodynamic efficiency.
https://evne.ws/3Zugnch
XPENG PUSHES 7-YEAR CHEAP CREDIT IN CHINA EV FIGHT
Xpeng has decided that the next battle in China’s EV market will be fought not on the sticker price, but in the loan agreement. It is offering seven-year, low-interest financing across its line-up for purchases made in China between 21 January and 31 January.
The headline offer sits on the Mona M03 sedan. The car starts at RMB 119,800 ($17,210), and Xpeng says buyers who put down 15% can pay as little as RMB 1,355 a month ($195).
Xpeng also wants to deliver 550,000–600,000 vehicles in 2026, which implies growth of about 28.1%–39.7%. Long loans help the maths, even if they do nothing for margins.
Others have already shown the way. Tesla rolled out its own seven-year plan on 6 January, pitching savings of up to RMB 33,479 ($4,810) and pushing rates as low as 0.98% annualised for a limited period. Xiaomi and Li Auto followed with incentives of their own, because in a crowded market nobody enjoys being the only firm not handing out sweets.
Regulators would like all this to look like “orderly competition”. Chinese government bodies have warned carmakers against “disorderly price wars” and have encouraged more financial support for consumers instead of ever cruder discounts.
https://evne.ws/4a1Kc9c
BYD DOMINATES MEXICO’S EV MARKET AS RIVALS DITHER
BYD now sells seven of every ten electric and plug-in hybrid cars in Mexico. It nearly doubled its local sales last year. Legacy carmakers say the market is too small and too early to matter. BYD disagrees.
Battery electrics and plug-in hybrids make up 9% of new-car sales in Mexico. Most global brands have skipped this slice even as demand grows. Chinese firms have not. Their share of Mexico’s total new-car market reached 20% in 2025, up from almost nothing five years earlier. Imports of Chinese EVs and plug-in hybrids rose from fewer than 500 units in 2021 to nearly 100,000 in 2025.
Price and finance do much of the work. BYD’s Dolphin Mini sells for about $2,000 less than the battery-powered Chevrolet Spark EUV. BYD dealers say the firm will absorb most of the cost of new tariffs of up to 50% on products from countries without free-trade deals, which took effect on 1 January 2026. They expect price rises to stay near 15,000 pesos ($852). BYD offers loans via banks at 7.9% to 12.9%, below the 13% to 14% market average. Almost 63% of Chinese cars sold in Mexico in the first ten months of 2025 were bought on credit, up from 56% a year earlier.
Policy helps too. Battery electrics and plug-in hybrids avoid a federal purchase tax, qualify for an income-tax deduction and skip annual fees in some states. Plan Mexico grants EVs and plug-in hybrids bought between 2025 and 2030 an immediate tax deduction of up to 86% of their value. BYD plans to add its flash charging in April, promising about 400 km (250 miles) of range from a five-minute charge.
https://evne.ws/468yXKE
CHINA DRIVES CAR STANDARDS ALL THE WAY TO ANTARCTICA
A Chinese-branded EV has just landed in Antarctica. The trip goes beyond a publicity stunt. It marks China’s shift from follower to active rulemaker in global automotive standards, as its new energy vehicle (NEV) and intelligent connected technologies pull ahead.
To show that its NEVs can handle the world’s harshest climates, the China Automotive Technology and Research Center (CATARC) built an “Antarctic system” of more than 30 development and verification items across five areas: driving reliability, functional safety, comfort experience, intelligent electronic control and thermal management.
Antarctica’s ultralow temperatures, strong winds, blizzards and intense ultraviolet radiation provide a natural proving ground for equipment performance under extreme conditions. The tests feed straight into the development and iterative upgrading of domestically produced NEVs, sharpening their adaptability to complex climates and, in turn, export markets.
Technical self-reliance anchors this push. CATARC has replaced foreign electronic control simulation test benches with domestic ones and developed China’s first industrial-grade simulation software for NEV research and design. It has also moved into foundational work, including the first domestically developed crash-test dummies and testing protocols for automotive-grade chips.
China has set up the China Automotive Standards Internationalisation Centre in Geneva, signalling a wish to sit closer to the rulemaking table. So far, 35 Chinese automotive standards, covering safety, battery systems and charging equipment, have been adopted globally.
As Chinese electric vehicles gain buyers overseas, trading partners are studying these standards.
https://evne.ws/4pX0S7x
CHINESE SUV CLAIMED TO SURVIVE DUAL TYRE BLOWOUTS
A Chinese SUV has driven through dual same-side tyre blowouts on ice and snow at motorway speeds without spinning off course. Leapmotor, backed by Stellantis, says its upcoming D19 passed two extreme winter tests designed to simulate simultaneous failures on one flank.
In the first test, the firm detonated both tyres on the same side at 80 kilometres per hour on a mixed ice-and-asphalt surface. The flagship SUV, it claims, held its line and stayed stable, with no loss of control or deviation from its path. A second trial at 120 km/h on ice and snow repeated the dual blowout, again without fishtailing or lane departure.
The tests aim to burnish Leapmotor’s safety and chassis credentials ahead of the D19’s launch in April. The SUV carries stability systems tuned for dual tyre blowout events, as well as precision low-speed manoeuvring and tight-radius turning for cramped streets and car parks.
Unveiled last October, the D19 will come in both battery-electric and extended-range electric versions, with six- and seven-seat layouts. The fully electric variant uses 1,000-volt architecture and delivers 540 kilowatts of combined output. A 115 kilowatt-hour pack gives it up to 720 kilometres of CLTC-rated range.
The extended-range version pairs all-wheel drive with 400 kilowatts of system output and 800-volt fast charging support. Its cell-to-chassis battery, with 80.3 kilowatt-hours of capacity, allows 500 kilometres of fully electric driving. Both versions sit on the LEAP 4.0 platform and use dual Qualcomm 8797 chips offering 1,280 TOPS of computing power. A three-motor vector control system sends the D19 from standstill to 100 km/h in three seconds.
https://evne.ws/3YVfU2G
DONGFENG FIRES UP 16,000-TON EV DIE-CASTING PLANT
Dongfeng has begun trial production at a new 16,000-tonne die-casting plant in Wuhan, turning out its first product, a battery casing, on January 21st. The site houses what the firm calls the world’s largest dual die-casting lines: one 16,000-tonne machine and one 10,000-tonne unit.
The factory targets large integrated die-cast structural parts for new energy vehicles, with an early focus on battery casings for models such as the Dongfeng eπ 007, eπ 008 and Voyah Dreamer. Mass production is due to start in April. In China’s crowded EV market, where range, efficiency and cost now matter more than novelty, high-tonnage casting promises lighter bodies, lower energy use and longer driving range than traditional multi-part fabrication.
Construction began in November 2024, with the main building finished by August 2025. Initial annual output is projected at 200,000 automotive components. A planned second phase would add four production lines and lift capacity to 600,000 units, suggesting that Dongfeng sees integrated casting as a core platform technology rather than a niche process.
The 16,000-tonne die-casting machine, designed and built in China, marks a domestic push up the value chain in high-pressure casting equipment that until recently came mostly from abroad. Alongside it, the 10,000-tonne machine runs a two-mould system: molten aluminium at 720℃ is injected and formed within two minutes under high pressure.
https://evne.ws/4sYn9oi
FAW BETS SCALE CAN SAVE HONGQI IN EV SHAKE-UP
FAW Group sold 3.302m vehicles in 2025 and booked more than 541.5bn yuan in revenue. At its 2026 Hongqi Supply Chain Partner Conference on January 21st, the state-owned group set out how it wants to turn that scale into an edge in a market reshaped by electrification and software.
The focus was Hongqi, FAW’s in-house luxury brand. Hongqi’s annual sales topped 460,000 units in 2025, its eighth straight year of growth, and it became the first Chinese luxury carmaker to pass 2m cumulative users. For 2026, FAW has set a group sales target of 3.546m vehicles, with Hongqi aiming for 550,000 units. By 2028 the brand wants to reach close to 1m units a year.
Liu Yigong, FAW’s general manager, called 2026 the start of a vital five-year plan, as the country’s car supply chain shifts towards batteries, chips and software. FAW’s answer is to double down on home turf. It plans to build a trillion-yuan automotive industry cluster in Changchun, lift annual output of new energy vehicles there to more than 1.4m units by 2030 and raise local sourcing of key parts to 60%.
https://evne.ws/3O1aelf
RENAULT GOES TO SHANGHAI TO LEARN CHINA SPEED
Renault no longer builds fuel-powered cars in China. Yet it has picked Shanghai as the place to learn how to move faster.
On January 19th François Provost, the boss of Renault’s China operations, set a blunt target at the firm’s Ampere China Development Centre (ACDC) in Shanghai: cut electric-vehicle derivative development to 16 months for two Twingo E-Tech variants, and compress new model development from concept freeze to start of production to 100 weeks or less. The aim is to match Chinese rivals that now grab a growing share of Europe’s EV market.
Opened in October 2024, ACDC sits inside China’s rapid-fire EV supply base. It does more than styling. The Shanghai team runs engineering, purchasing and cost control for new models, and scouts innovation and partners. Its job is to deliver “China speed” for Renault’s global line-up rather than local combustion cars, which the French group stopped making when it shut its Dongfeng passenger-vehicle joint venture in 2020 and ended a light-truck tie-up with Jinbei Automotive in 2023.
The centre’s first test is the Twingo E-Tech. Designed in France and built at Renault’s plant in Slovenia, it was unveiled in Paris last November. ACDC now leads work on two derivatives: one badged for Dacia and another for Nissan, Renault’s Japanese ally. The car will go on sale in Europe this year at under €20,000 (about $23,400 or £18,950), aimed at the mass end of the segment rather than the premium fringe.
Renault still has a three-way joint venture with Dongfeng and Nissan that makes small volumes of the Dacia Spring subcompact electric car in China for export to Europe. But its bet in Shanghai today is less about volume and more about time-to-market, as model cycles shrink and speed becomes the last edge left to defend.
https://evne.ws/4pWMxbg
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